masks can't hide all of the pain
by mijumaru-chan
Summary: Gerome's life through the bad timeline, and his relationship with a certain blue-haired princess. Cross-posted from AO3


**A/N: First fanfic! Yay! I would appreciate any reviews!**

6

He is nervous, or, as nervous a 6-year old could be.

"Mother, where are we going?"

His mother, a kind-looking woman with pinkish-red hair, just smiles her mysterious smile and continues to lead the him down the stone path. They were leaving Wyvern Valley. Leaving home. Their loyal wyvern, Minerva, flies overhead.

"Mother!" He really hates not knowing.

She finally relents.

"Your father is going to meet us at the top of that hill. We're all going together to Ylisstol, our home before you were born."

"Ylisstol. . .?"

"It's a wonderful place, and I'm sure you'll meet a lot of friends."

He ponders this for a while. _Friends_. . .

In no time at all, they're joined by his father, and the family sets off on Minerva's back. He sits comfortably between his parents and his legs fit neatly into the spaces between the grooves on Minerva's back.

It takes a long time, but they arrive at a bustling city, full of men and women and children. He stares in awe at the busy shops and streets, the aroma of freshly baked bread dominating his nose.

They dismount Minerva and head to the palace, where his parents' friends are apparently staying. His parents point out all of the different magical sights to him, and his heart swells with hope. _This is my home now._

He is settling into the palace, the home shared by the Shepherds and their families, by Exalt Chrom's request, and he's met his parents' friends as well as their children. He immediately decides that Yarne, the son of Ricken and Panne, is a crybaby and someone to stay away from, and that Noire, daughter of Gregor and Tharja, is a _bigger_ crybaby and someone to avoid contact with at all costs.

He gets along fairly well with Inigo, son of Virion and Olivia, and Kjelle, daughter of Stahl and Sully, but he doesn't talk too much with them.

The boy begins to lose hope that he will ever form a strong friendship here. And then he sees her, just outside his window. A blue-haired girl, swinging her wooden practice sword at a training dummy. The princess.

His mother Cherche often talks about her, praising her diligence and responsibility. Time to give it a shot.

He grabs his own practice sword and marches outside purposefully. He spots her and, taking a deep breath, starts towards her.

She sees him coming over and meets his determined gaze.

No words have to be spoken, and the two young children spring at each other, wooden swords at the ready.

He swings, she dodges. She swings, he dodges. In the end, no one is declared victor, and the match ends with both sides collapsing with exhaustion.

She turns to him, flashing a toothy smile, "That was fun."

"Yeah."

"I'm Luci, by the way."

"Gerome." 

8

Time passes slowly in a closet. For the two children huddled inside, it has been eternity since they have seen the light of day. Years, decades, eons. . . Maybe even minutes. Only one thing is certain: They must never, ever be found.

Even now, they can hear the maniacal laughter of their pursuer, just outside the sturdy walls of their shelter.

Even now, he feels himself clutching the comforting hand of his best friend harder, eliciting a tiny squeak.

"Gerome," whispers the blue-haired girl. "You're hurting me."

He loosens his grasp. "Sorry, Luci."

They sit in silence for a while, until the unmistakeable sound of footsteps replaces their dread with pure fear..

Suddenly, the door is ripped open, and sunlight washes onto the faces of two terrified 8-year olds.

"Gotcha!"

The children's faces revert back to happiness as their attacker, a young man with a shock of white hair and an indelible smile, scoops them up.

"Dad," the boy whines, "how did you find us so quickly?"

Henry giggles and recounts his side of the story, "Well let's see. . . First, I took one of Lissa's pet birds, . . . . and then I sacrificed it and exchanged its soul for information!" He then places the children back down and continues to erupt in a fit of laughter.

"Gerome, your dad's so scary!" Luci is beginning to look a bit disturbed.

"He's just . . . special."

Henry recovers and faces the children again, "Who wants another round of hide-and-seek?"

"WE DO!"

"That was fun."

The son is in bed, father kneeling beside him.

"Teehee! What was?"

"Today was."

Henry looks down at the face of his precious son, and smiles, "You like hide-and-seek, don't you, Gerome?"

"Not seeking. Just hiding, and. . . Luci," he adds shyly.

The father can see the joy in his son's eyes. He hates to ruin Gerome's happiness, but he has to know. "Now, when I come back, we're gonna play it again."

"Come. . . back?" It begins to dawn on him. "You're leaving again, aren't you?"

"Yeah, the captain CAWlled me back to the front lines." He pauses to giggle at his own bad pun. "The Risen invasion is starting to look bad. But I'll be back before you know it! And your mother is going to take such good care of you!"

His son's gaze shifts downward, and he remains silent for a couple of moments. Henry sees tears, balancing precariously on his child's eyes, threatening to fall, and he starts to regret telling his son so suddenly.

"Dad?" Henry almost flinches from the sound of his son's voice, expecting a temper tantrum or a fit of sobs.

"What?"

"Good luck." 

10

They're sparring again, the boy and the girl. Both of them have gotten considerably more skilled since the first time they fought, and by now, they're using bronze practice blades instead of wooden ones.

Henry watches from a distance. Watches the strikes, the parries,the jabs, the counters. Watches the whirl of short white hair, and long blue hair. Watches his son, and his son's best friend.

The match finally ends with the boy victorious, but only by a hair, and the boy's father takes this chance to approach him.

"Dad!" The cry is shocked but laced with ecstasy. "You're back!"

"Teehee! Well I couldn't miss my own son's tenth birthday!" Henry turns to Luci. "And hello to you, Luci! You've grown up quite a bit!"

"It's good to see you too, Mr. Henry!"

"Dad! She goes by Lucina now!"

They all go to the palace, where his mother joyfully embraces her husband.

"So, Gerome, where do you want to go for your birthday?"

All eyes turn to him.

He thinks about this for a while and then decides.

"I want to visit the bazaar."

They spend the whole day picking out gifts at the bazaar. Cherche is drawn to the different fabrics and materials at a clothing stand, and Henry is attracted to the strange items on display of a dark hex shop.

"Oooooohhhhhh, look at these Risen arms! And these pegasus eyeballs are top-notch

too. . . "

In the end, the boy chooses two masks, one resembling a bat (or as he wanted to think, a wyvern), and another that seems to modeled after a blue butterfly.

The boy and the girl wear the masks, wyvern and butterfly, respectively, pretending to be legendary heroes They spend the rest of the day smiting invisible Risen.

Finally, the time has come to say goodbye to his father again.

"Teehee! I need to help prevent a CAWtastrophe! I promise I'll be back soon!"

The boy sees his father for the very last time, Henry's empty promise still hanging in the air.

14 

"Did you hear? The war is starting to get real bad. Noire and Brady lost their fathers just recently." Lucina's tone is somber, and the sky seems to reflect her mood.

He nods slowly. "Yeah. The Risen keep appearing, don't they? They've been summoned, more and more, ever since. . . "

The sentence is never finished, but they both know the words that didn't come.

Ever since Chrom was killed.

Lucina's father, the brave Exalt, commander of the Shepherds, was struck down by his very best friend. He had died, just like Henry had, in the terrible war that never ended.

Rain starts to pour from the gray overcast sky, and the two teenagers start head inside for shelter.

Inside the palace, twelve women are gathered.

The wives of the Shepherds.

Queen Sumia glances at Cordelia, who gives her an encouraging, but melancholy, smile.

The girl's mother sighs and turns to face her daughter and her daughter's best friend.

"We know how tough this must be for you and. . . we're really sorry. You children deserve better than to grow up without fathers. As mothers, twelve of us were required to stay here. But now you children are grown up, and. . . and. . . "

The boy's mother, Cherche, continues.  
"We have made our decision. We _will_ go and fight."

There is nothing but silence in the room.

They have all said their goodbyes. Twelve women, on horseback, leaving their teenage children for the war that will surely take their lives.

He watches them leave, Lucina by his side. Tears are rolling down her face, and they stay standing there till sunset.

It is only two months later, that Minerva returns, wounded . . . and riderless. 

16

It's their turns now.

He stands with Lucina, facing their allies, the children of the Shepherds.

With fierce determination, they rally.

"The Shepherds gave their lives fighting for humanity. As they children of these warriors, we will carry on their legacy! The Fell Dragon will not rise as long as we are alive!"

There are twelve in all, including him.

Lucina. Cynthia. Owain. Inigo. Brady. Severa. Noire. Kjelle. Yarne. Nah. Laurent.

The last stand against the never-ending army of Risen. It was as if they were crusading against fate itself.

He is afraid. Afraid and desparate. But he can't let anyone see his fear. Not even Luci. Before they leave the palace forever, he rummages through his belongings, and finds it. A reminder of the father he lost long ago.

No one even asks him about the mask. It's as if they understand his fear and pain, understand the need to keep them hidden. 

17

It seems as if the gods finally took pity on the ruined world.

They are given a chance. A chance to fix everything!

The Divine Dragon had opened a portal, back into time, before Grima's ascension, before the death of the Exalt Emmeryn, before the fall of the Shepherds.

And now, the children of Ylisse are preparing for the journey of their lives. They have decided beforehand that, to prevent mass confusion among the original Shepherds, to send one hero along first. She would find a way around the Emmeryn's assassination, and warn the Shepherds of the Risen and of the terrible future. She, of course, was Lucina.

He stands with Minerva, watching as the best friend from his childhood approaches the portal. Before she leaves, he hands her something.

"It would be wise to disguise yourself."

Lucina smiles, and puts on the mask she last wore seven years ago.

"Thank you. I'll see you about twenty years ago."

"Good luck."

She's gone, and it's then he realizes how much he loves her. 

21

It's four years until he meets her again. He is in Wyvern Valley, defending the villagers from some brigands, and he sees them. The Shepherds, led by Chrom. He sees his parents, and resists the urge to spring into their arms. He does not belong in this time. Their plan has failed, and he is only here to bring Minerva peace.

"Father, we _have_ to do something! The villagers are in trouble!"

That voice. . . It can't be!

Their plan hadn't failed after all! Lucina is safely in this time, and Cynthia, Owain, and Severa are with her too!

Seeing Lucina again, right here in front of him, reawakens a desire he had felt ever since the two were children. He longs to be with her, and almost embraces her with joy.

Then he sees the ring on her finger.

His Lucina. Engaged to someone else. The realization comes as a huge blow, and he can feel a spike of hurt driving through his heart.

He wants to hate her lover, but he can't. The tactician is too kind, too responsible, too. . . perfect. In every way, a better version of him. And that's what hurts him the most. 

22

He almost doesn't feel the lance that runs him through. Time seems to stop completely as the shock of what just happened kicks in.

Minerva shrieks as her master falls, and the rest of the Shepherds watch in horror as one of their own is struck down by a Risen paladin.

He's floating. He sees his father, not the Henry in this time, but his _real_ father, laughing as he and Lucina try on their masks for the first time. His mother, leading him to his new home. Is it time to join them?

A horrible scream jolts him out of this surreal dreamscape, and he can see Lucina bending over him. His best friend. His comrade. His biggest _what-if_.

"Gerome, _please_ come back," she moans. "I need you here. I've known you for so long. You can't just leave me now! Please. . . "

Luci was crying for him. His life was draining away, but _Luci was crying for him_. It was almost enough to convince him to hang on. Almost.


End file.
